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Your Credit Report Just Got Easier to Understand
By Adam Hardy MONEY RESEARCH COLLECTIVE
New Equifax credit report design highlights your score and explains key factors affecting it.
Your credit report is getting a reader-friendly makeover.
Equifax, one of the three major credit bureaus, unveiled on Thursday a new design for its physical credit report, which now prominently displays your credit score at the top along with a breakdown of the factors that help and harm it.
“The new U.S. consumer credit report design was undertaken in direct response to consumer feedback,” Tina Shell, a senior vice president at Equifax, said in a news release.
Credit reports, which typically do not include credit scores, are detailed credit files that may include addresses, employment information and payment histories for loans, credit cards and other financial products. These vital financial dossiers have long been criticized as difficult for consumers to understand.
In a focus group conducted by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, participants described credit reports as “hard to get, and hard to read.” And in a consumer complaint lodged to the CFPB earlier this year, a Pennsylvania resident railed against the credit bureaus over trying to upcharge for access to credit reports and scores.
“How can the companies in charge of … publishing my credit report be fair if they are constantly trying to sell me their products?” the complaint reads. “There has to be a better way.”
In recent years, the three credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, have taken other steps to make it easier for Americans to monitor their credit. Legally, the Fair Credit Reporting Act mandates that the bureaus give Americans access to at least one free credit report per year. But during the pandemic, the bureaus began allowing people to check their credit reports weekly. In 2023, that policy became permanent. That same year the three bureaus also removed medical debt in collections of up to $500 from their reports amid pressure from the Biden administration.
In October 2024, Equifax announced it would add credit scores to its physical reports. According to a company spokesperson, the updated version released Thursday features the score more prominently and includes easy-to-read tips on how your score is calculated.
An Experian spokesperson told Money that the bureau began adding credit scores to its reports in 2021. TransUnion did not respond to Money’s request for comment on whether it has plans to show credit scores on its reports.
How to check your credit report and score for free
With its redesigned physical credit report, Equifax lets you check your credit report and score for free at the same time. However, the physical copy is the only version of your Equifax report that currently includes your score (VantageScore 3.0) at the top by default.
You can request a physical copy by phone at 1-888-Equifax or by mail:
Equifax Disclosure Department
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374
Alternatively, you can create a free myEquifax account to view your credit report online. To view your credit score through your online profile, however, you will need to sign up for a service called “Equifax Core Credit.” While this service is free, the agreement allows Equifax to advertise financial products and services to you and share your financial data with its affiliates unless you opt out. After you’ve signed up, your profile will display your credit score and the factors affecting it, much like the new physical report.
At annualcreditreport.com, you can also request your credit reports from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion at the same time, for free. (Despite the website’s name, reports are available weekly.) Money tested whether credit reports from Equifax and Experian obtained through this website included credit scores, and they did not.
Other free ways to check your credit score include:
- Online through your bank, credit union, credit card provider or a personal finance company. Depending on the institution, you can check your VantageScore or your FICO score, usually through the mobile app.
- The other credit bureaus: Experian and TransUnion also allow you to check your scores for free on their websites. (Be mindful that you’re not accidentally signing up for a paid service while creating your accounts.)
- Directly through FICO: While many apps and financial institutions offer ways to check your FICO score, you can also check a free version of your FICO score at myFICO.com.
Depending on where you check your credit score, you may get a slightly different number. That’s because you have numerous versions of your credit score.
Usually, you will see one of the two main credit scores — a VantageScore or FICO score (there are many different models within these two types). Each lender or industry has a preferred model they check when you apply for credit. With personal finance or budgeting apps, you may even come across an “educational” version of your score, which is not an official score and isn’t viewed directly by lenders. Don’t assume the highest version of the score is the one your bank or lender is going to see.
As you monitor your credit, beware of the upsell. Make sure you aren’t paying for credit information that you could have gotten for free.
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More from Money:
Buy Now, Pay Later Loans Can Now Appear on Your Credit Report
The Hidden Cost of Using Everyday Bills Like Netflix and Rent to Boost Your Credit Score
Student Loan Delinquencies Are So Bad They’re Hurting America’s Average Credit Score
Adam Hardy is Money's lead data journalist. He writes news and feature stories aimed at helping everyday people manage their finances. He joined Money full-time in 2021 but has covered personal finance and economic topics since 2018. Previously, he worked for Forbes Advisor, The Penny Hoarder and Creative Loafing. In addition to those outlets, Adam’s work has been featured in a variety of local, national and international publications, including the Asia Times, Business Insider, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Yahoo! Finance, Nasdaq and several others. Adam graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Florida, where he studied magazine journalism and sociology. As a first-generation college graduate from a low-income, single-parent household, Adam understands firsthand the financial barriers that plague low-income Americans. His reporting aims to illuminate these issues. Since joining Money, Adam has already written over 300 articles, including a cover story on financial surveillance, a profile of Director Rohit Chopra of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and an investigation into flexible spending accounts, which found that workers forfeit billions of dollars annually through the workplace plans. He has also led data analysis on some of Money’s marquee rankings, including Best Places to Live, Best Places to Travel and Best Hospitals. He regularly contributes data reporting for Best Colleges, Best Banks and other lists as well. Adam also holds a multimedia storytelling certificate from Poynter’s News University and a data journalism certificate from the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) at the University of Missouri. In 2017, he received an English teaching certification from the University of Cambridge, which he utilized during his time in Seoul, South Korea. There, he taught students of all ages, from 5 to 65, and worked with North Korean refugees who were resettling in the area. Now, Adam lives in Saint Petersburg, Florida, with his pup Bambi. He is a card-carrying shuffleboard club member.